So I got a Ludwig Breakbeats kit for Christmas and today I'm finally getting to spend some quality time with it after tuning it and spiffing it up for how I play. Funny thing is, the name of the kit is influencing me at the moment as everything I'm playing is hip-hoppish!

I'm sure my neighbors are digging it but you know me, it's such a style I'm known for ;)

"So I got a Ludwig Breakbeats kit for Christmas"
Im sure that the last thing that anyone in your family would do is give you another drum kit.
Somehow I think that your statement should read like this;
"So I bought myself a Ludwig Breakbeats kit for Christmas" :)

i beens seeing them at GC stacked for some weeks now. only last week did they set them on the floor and i got a chance for a test ride. its a pretty cool little kit with alot of foundation to learn fundamentals! :)

"So I got a Ludwig Breakbeats kit for Christmas"
Im sure that the last thing that anyone in your family would do is give you another drum kit.
Somehow I think that your statement should read like this;
"So I bought myself a Ludwig Breakbeats kit for Christmas" :)

Well, Bob, you're partially correct. However, the wife pushed me in to this one as I just got offered to play for a big dance studio run by a former show director and choreographer for my employer, and she just didn't see me hauling the big Ludwigs out of the house twice a week to play for tap and jazz classes three hours at a time. So we were at the local Sam Ash and she saw them and said "these will be perfect" while reminding me I shoulda' kept the Safaris I had. And she was right and willing to pay for them. What a great wife ;)

Funny thing, they actually sound good with the stock Chinese heads. But I do want to put wooden hoops on the bass drum. Bass drums just feel better with wooden hoops.

Well, Bob, you're partially correct. However, the wife pushed me in to this one as I just got offered to play for a big dance studio run by a former show director and choreographer for my employer, and she just didn't see me hauling the big Ludwigs out of the house twice a week to play for tap and jazz classes three hours at a time. So we were at the local Sam Ash and she saw them and said "these will be perfect" while reminding me I shoulda' kept the Safaris I had. And she was right and willing to pay for them. What a great wife ;)

Funny thing, they actually sound good with the stock Chinese heads. But I do want to put wooden hoops on the bass drum. Bass drums just feel better with wooden hoops.

See you should have kept the Sonor Safari! Did she say, "I TOLD YOU SO!"? :)

Yes - she did say "I told you so", but she understands my love of the Ludwig mojo. And I still make fun of 12" snares and 13" hi-hats - as I'm still using a 14" snare and 15" hi-hats. I do have to make do with the 14x16 bass drum, but this is forced by practicality. I did a test the other day and I can get the whole kit in the cab of my truck (I have a Ford F-150 without an extra cab). So the bass drum and snare are stacked on the passenger seat, and the two toms fit behind me, along with the hardware and a couple of cymbals. It's rockin'!

I love my 13 1/4" K Zildjian Hybrid Hi-Hats :)
They work really well on my 6 piece Lud Classic with the 12" and 13" toms on the left of my BD. That extra inch in space savings means a lot.

A while ago, I picked up a used cracked 14" K Custom Dark hi hat top. I cut it down and polished the bell on it. When I finished trimming out the cracked area, I ended up with 13 1/4".
Fast forward to recently. I finally ran across a used 13 1/4" K Hybrid bottom and snatched it up right away.
What a fantastic pairing - I'm wowed every time I play them. And using them in conjunction with a 13" snare, everything sits nice and snug.
As much as I like my 14" hats and snares, I think I'm a 13" convert.
Here's a fuzzy pic for y'all - ha ha: EDIT - replaced fuzzy pic

I broke down today and called the guys at Pro Drum on the off-chance they might have 16" maple bass drum hoops. And of course, they did! So I ran out to Hollywood and picked them up - I'm waiting for the paint to dry - I hate metal bass drum hoops, especially when they don't allow the provided pedal riser to really lock on to it.

I broke down today and called the guys at Pro Drum on the off-chance they might have 16" maple bass drum hoops. And of course, they did! So I ran out to Hollywood and picked them up - I'm waiting for the paint to dry - I hate metal bass drum hoops, especially when they don't allow the provided pedal riser to really lock on to it.

Ha ha - the things we do for our drums.

You're sure about that Bo? I think the stock hoops look pretty good on there. Might be best to hang onto them, so you can put them back on if you decide to sell the kit.

You're sure about that Bo? I think the stock hoops look pretty good on there. Might be best to hang onto them, so you can put them back on if you decide to sell the kit.

I still have them. I just find it funny that you would be provided with a bass drum lift that fits and holds better on a straight hoop made out of wood, yet they give you metal ones that have this recessed channel in the middle. Maybe if they did the bass drum pedal lift like Sonor did with the Safari, then it wouldn't matter what the hoops were - you could go with regular triple-flanged hoops in that case and really lighten the drum up. But I'll take wood ones for this purpose.

And I agree, the Sonor Martini is just silly. I mean, a 14" bass drum? Come on.

Agreed. Outside of something for a child to play on, when will people learn that when you get to 20" or below, the diameter of the bass drum becomes irrelevant in terms of stage space. It's depth that takes up real estate.

At 14", it's not a bass drum, it's just a drum on it's side. There's nothing "bass" about it. "Alto" drum maybe? "Tenor" on a good day? ;)

I have played the Ludwig kit and a similar micro sized kit from Gretsch. The Gretsch kit had an adjustable bass drum. Out of the box the Sonor kit sounded great. I think Bo and I will start the Pinoy chapter of the too many drums club.

After owning a Safari I have concluded that 16" is the smallest that I want to go as far as a bass drum is concerned. I really like my Safari and I find that the 16" BD is at the limit for me as far as depth of sound. Also, I would never be happy with a single 8" ride tom. 10" is the smallest that I want to play.
I also agree with Bo that the metal BD hoops are better replaced with wood. I never replaced mine because I only gig with my Safari on rare occasion. Most of the time is is left at a bands practice space where I play it once a week.

I converted a 16" tom to a bass with spurs and a riser.
I tried to play it and it just didn't feel right. I sold it without really giving it a fair chance.
I'm real comfortable with the 18's and 20's I've got, but for some reason, the 16 just felt silly to me.
I think it might have seemed a bit better if it would have had proper bass drum hoops on it,
instead of the tom hoops.
I do have another 16 floor tom, and most of the parts to try it again.
Maybe I will someday - ha ha.

I pretty much agree about the tom sizes too.
IMO, once you get below a 10" tom, you're into roto-tom territory.

The hats and stand in the pic AirborneSFC posted look a little out of proportion.
I think they need to be downsized - LOL.